


The gift

by Servena



Category: Marco Polo (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Concubines, Desire, Dominance, F/M, Hidden Talents, Submission
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-02
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-07-06 23:48:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15896619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Servena/pseuds/Servena
Summary: The greatest gift a concubine could have was the talent to recognize a man’s needs – not the wants they articulated so freely but their innermost desires, unknown even to themselves.





	The gift

The greatest gift a concubine could have was the talent to recognize a man’s needs – not the wants they articulated so freely but their innermost desires, unknown even to themselves. Fulfilling these needs meant bounding them to her in ways that reached far above a simple exchange of service for coin.

Mei Lin had developed this talent since she had been a young girl, since she had begun to work the streets of Xianyang, and it had served her well. Only this ability had allowed her to rise from a common whore that worked for a piece of bread to a royal concubine that enjoyed the shelter of the palace and received exclusive garments and beautiful trinkets without having to ask for it.

Now she could tell a man’s desires by the way he looked at her, the way he moved around her, by the quickening of his heart when she had found the things to do, the words to say, the places to touch to open not only his purse, but his very soul to her.

This gift would also serve her in her current situation.

From the moment she had seen Ahmad for the first time, when she had still been wounded and in chains, her mind had been turned to the task of figuring him out. She had understood quickly that he was the key to her freedom, even more important, the key to her daughter. So she watched him as he tended to her, felt the way his fingers lingered on her when he touched her, and she saw the desire in his eyes.

Many men enjoyed the image of a woman helpless, bound, completely at their mercy. They found the sight of a woman on her knees arousing, even more so when it was not by her choice. It was less about the sex and more about the power, about the control over an object of desire. These men she had tried to avoid as soon as she could afford it, for they brought much pain and often little reward for it.

A man like this would have forced himself on her in her vulnerable situation, safe in the knowledge that she was theirs to take without punishment as long as she remained alive. But she had realized soon that Ahmad was not one of them. There was desire there, she could sense it underneath the surface, but it was well-controlled. At first she had entertained the thought that this was out of respect for his Khan. But once she had been healed and allowed to be free to move, she soon realized the true reason.

They moved around each other like being caught in a complicated dance, exchanging glances and brief touches, but none of them ever crossed that invisible line, Mei Lin still weighing her options and Ahmad seemingly content with the situation. Yet he kept her around, so there had to be entertainment in it for him. She just wasn’t quite sure yet what it was.

One day she found a small dagger on the table, an exquisite weapon with a sharp blade and a beautifully carved grip. She picked it up and weighted it in her hand. It was perfectly balanced to be thrown with great accuracy.

“Do you like it?” he asked from behind.

“You shouldn’t give me something like this”, she said, still turning the dagger in her hands.

“Why not?” he asked.

She looked up. “Because I could kill you with it.”

“I have no doubt about that”, he replied calmly. And there it was, nothing more than a glint in his dark eyes, but she was suddenly sure that his heart was beating faster in his chest.

She moved to put the dagger back, but was stopped by his words. “Keep it.”

She didn’t ask why. She simply slipped it into her boot while she was turning over this new theory in her mind.

A theory wasn’t worth anything however, until it was put to the test.

“Would you like to see me naked?” she asked a few days later. She had decided that if anything were to happen, she would have to take the first step. It was a risk, but a calculated one.

“Half of Cambulac would jump at the chance”, he replied.

She frowned. “That’s not an answer.”

He smiled at that. “If this is something you are willing to do.”

“Under one condition.” Her voice was firm, as was her gaze.

He leaned forward. The light of the nearby candle was reflected by his dark eyes. “And what would that be?”

She hesitated for the split of a second before she spoke the word. “Kneel.”

For a moment the whole room seemed to hold its breath. Then he sunk down onto his knees on the expensive carpet without a word of protest.

She smiled as she slowly begun to undo her belt.  She loved being right.


End file.
